Undoing and Redoing Actions in an Edit Control in Desktop Windows Applications

While testing edit controls, you can use specific properties and methods of the corresponding program object to perform certain actions and obtain data stored in controls. You can call these methods and properties from your keyword tests, as well as from scripts. This topic describes how to work with the needed properties and methods from your scripts. However, when testing a control from your keyword test, you can use the same methods and properties calling them from keyword test operations. For more information, see Keyword Tests Basic Operations.

Testing an edit control, you may need to cancel the most recent operation, for example, if this operation was incorrect, and on the contrary you need to cancel the last command. In this case you should use the Undo and Redo commands. There are two approaches, which allow you to perform these commands:

• The first one consists of simulating the Ctrl+Z or Alt+Backspace key combinations. These combinations are the shortcut keys of the mentioned commands. Ctrl+Z performs the Undo command and repeating the shortcut simulation performs the Redo command. You can simulate keystrokes via the Keys action. The following example demonstrates how you can cancel the last operation using the shortcut:
  JavaScript, JScript

  Python

  VBScript

  DelphiScript

  C++Script, C#Script

  Copy Code

  JavaScript, JScript

  function Main()
  {
    var p, Edit;
    // Run Notepad
    WshShell.Run("notepad.exe", SW_SHOWNORMAL);
    // Obtain the edit object
    p = Sys.Process("NOTEPAD");
    Edit = p.Window("Notepad").Window("Edit");
  
    // Type new text
    Edit.Keys("Come back!!");
  
    // Perform Undo command
    Edit.Keys("^z");
    Edit.Keys("Come over here!!");
  
    // Perform Redo command
    Edit.Keys("^z");
    Edit.Keys("[Right] I have something important to say!!");
  }

  Python

  def Main():
    # Run Notepad 
    WshShell.Run("notepad.exe", SW_SHOWNORMAL)
    # Obtain the edit object
    p = Sys.Process("NOTEPAD")
    Edit = p.Window("Notepad").Window("Edit")
  
    # Type new text
    Edit.Keys("Come back!!")
  
    # Perform Undo command
    Edit.Keys("^z")
    Edit.Keys("Come over here!!")
  
    # Perform Redo command
    Edit.Keys("^z")
    Edit.Keys("[Right] I have something important to say!!")

  VBScript

  Sub Main
    Dim p, Edit
    ' Run Notepad
    Call WshShell.Run("notepad.exe", SW_SHOWNORMAL)
    ' Obtain the edit object
    Set p = Sys.Process("NOTEPAD")
    Set Edit = p.Window("Notepad").Window("Edit")
  
    ' Type new text
    Edit.Keys "Come back!!"
     
    ' Perform Undo command
    Edit.Keys "^z"
    Edit.Keys "Come over here!!"
  
    ' Perform Redo command
    Edit.Keys "^z"
    Edit.Keys "[Right] I have something important to say!!"
  End Sub

  DelphiScript

  procedure Main;
    var p, Edit: OleVariant;
  begin
    // Run Notepad
    WshShell.Run('notepad.exe', SW_SHOWNORMAL);
    // Obtain the edit object
    p := Sys.Process('NOTEPAD');
    Edit := p.Window('Notepad').Window('Edit');
  
    // Type new text
    Edit.Keys('Come back!!');
  
    // Perform Undo command
    Edit.Keys('^z');
    Edit.Keys('Come over here!!');
  
    // Perform Redo command
    Edit.Keys('^z');
    Edit.Keys('[Right] I have something important to say!!');
  end;

  C++Script, C#Script

  function Main()
  {
    var p, Edit;
    // Run Notepad
    WshShell["Run"]("notepad.exe", SW_SHOWNORMAL);
  
    // Obtain the edit object and fill it with text
    p = Sys["Process"]("NOTEPAD");
    Edit = p["Window"]("Notepad")["Window"]("Edit");
  
    // Type new text
    Edit["Keys"]("Come back!!");
  
    // Perform Undo command
    Edit["Keys"]("^z");
    Edit["Keys"]("Come over here!!");
  
    // Perform Redo command
    Edit["Keys"]("^z");
    Edit["Keys"]("[Right] I have something important to say!!");
  }
• Using edit control’s context menu. This menu can be called by using the ClickR action. Use the Window.PopupMenu.Click method to select the desired command (Undo), or simulate the U key, which is the hot key for this command. An example below demonstrates how to perform the mentioned operations using the context menu:
  JavaScript, JScript

  Python

  VBScript

  DelphiScript

  C++Script, C#Script

  Copy Code

  JavaScript, JScript

  function Main()
  {
    var p, Edit;
    // Run Notepad
    WshShell.Run("notepad.exe", SW_SHOWNORMAL);
  
    // Obtain the edit object
    p = Sys.Process("NOTEPAD");
    Edit = p.Window("Notepad").Window("Edit");
  
    // Type new text
    Edit.Keys ("Do cats eat bats?");
  
    // Perform the Undo command via the context menu
    Edit.ClickR();
    Edit.Keys ("u");
    Edit.Keys ("Do bats eat cats?");
  
    // Perform the Redo command via the context menu
    Edit.ClickR();
    Edit.PopupMenu.Click ("Undo");
  }

  Python

  def Main():
    # Run Notepad 
    WshShell.Run("notepad.exe", SW_SHOWNORMAL)
  
    # Obtain the edit object
    p = Sys.Process("NOTEPAD")
    Edit = p.Window("Notepad").Window("Edit")
  
    # Type new text
    Edit.Keys ("Do cats eat bats?")
  
    # Perform the Undo command via the context menu
    Edit.ClickR()
    Edit.Keys ("u")
    Edit.Keys ("Do bats eat cats?")
  
    # Perform the Redo command via the context menu 
    Edit.ClickR()
    Edit.PopupMenu.Click ("Undo")

  VBScript

  Sub Main
    Dim p, Edit
    ' Run Notepad
    Call WshShell.Run("notepad.exe", SW_SHOWNORMAL)
  
    ' Obtain the edit object
    Set p = Sys.Process("NOTEPAD")
    Set Edit = p.Window("Notepad").Window("Edit")
  
    ' Type new text
    Edit.Keys "Do cats eat bats?"
  
    ' Perform the Undo command via the context menu
    Edit.ClickR
    Edit.Keys "u"
    Edit.Keys "Do bats eat cats?"
  
    ' Perform the Redo command via the context menu
    Edit.ClickR
    Edit.PopupMenu.Click "Undo"
  End Sub

  DelphiScript

  procedure Main;
    var p, Edit: OleVariant;
  begin
    // Run Notepad
    WshShell.Run('notepad.exe', SW_SHOWNORMAL);
   
    // Obtain the edit object
    p := Sys.Process('NOTEPAD');
    Edit := p.Window('Notepad').Window('Edit');
  
    // Type new text
    Edit.Keys ('Do cats eat bats?');
  
    // Perform the Undo command via the context menu
    Edit.ClickR;
    Edit.Keys ('u');
    Edit.Keys ('Do bats eat cats?');
  
    // Perform the Redo command via the context menu
    Edit.ClickR;
    Edit.PopupMenu.Click ('Undo');
  end;

  C++Script, C#Script

  function Main()
  {
    var p, Edit;
    // Run Notepad
    WshShell["Run"]("notepad.exe", SW_SHOWNORMAL);
    
    // Obtain the edit object
    p = Sys["Process"]("NOTEPAD");
    Edit = p["Window"]("Notepad")["Window"]("Edit");
  
    // Type new text
    Edit["Keys"]("Do cats eat bats?");
  
    // Perform the Undo command via the context menu
    Edit["ClickR"]();
    Edit["Keys"]("u");
    Edit["Keys"]("Do bats eat cats?");
  
    // Perform the Redo command via the context menu
    Edit["ClickR"]();
    Edit["PopupMenu"]["Click"]("Undo");
  }